'Where am I again ?' His thoughts were scrambled, the last thing Takumi saw was his shadow.

'Oh right, the piercing ox.' He remembered it now, he knew the odds he might fail his subjugation when summoning it. Still, he was too high on the winning streak to doubt himself.

"You're alright ?" He heard her voice, "yeah, just, a bit dizzy." His eyes were in a blur, he couldn't feel anything but the throbbing pain everywhere.

"Just rest dear, let me handle it." Her voice is so soft, he can't see it, but an image of her smile somehow makes the pain a little less awful.

'Handle what ?' He wanted to ask her, 'crap, my head hurts.' Takumi didn't manage to find his voice, his body also lacked the strength he wanted.

*crash* *BOOM!*

Despite the loud sound of something heavy was crashed into the ground. He actually found his own eyelid too heavy to keep open.

"Hey, you're awake now." He blinked drowsily, adjusting to the tiny ray of sunlight that got through Tojiko's hair.

His head felt heavy, resting against something warm and solid. It took a moment for Takumi to register.

His head was on her lap, the warmth of her hand gliding through his hair in slow, soothing strokes. His eyes were half-lidded, but his eyes never left her.

She gazed down at him with a gentle, knowing expression as if she understood things he hadn't even begun to grasp yet.

"I failed, didn't I?" He said, just now. His memory returned completely.

The eighth Shikigami, piercing bull. It rammed right through his group Shikigami, yes, group. Who would've guessed that this ox can move faster than he can react. Moving to the side was much easier as a plan inside his head.

"I'll say it was a good attempt." That attempt cost him to use four Shikigami.

Max elephant, great serpent, tranquil deer, and toad all got flung away from its path. Lucky for him, none of them were destroyed.

"You didn't say I succeeded. And by the way, thanks."

Tojiko intervented at the last second, jumping in between him and the bull just as the first contact landed. She pulled it and lifted it fully over her head and chucked it across the field.

"Of course." Her fingers didn’t stop moving. If anything, she became even more deliberate.

He just lay there in silence. Takumi wasn’t sure how much time passed, but eventually, he shifted, moving to sit up.

Or at least, tried to.

Her hand moved, palm pressing lightly against his forehead.

"You’re not going anywhere," she said smoothly.

He blinked.

"But-"

"No butts." Her voice is gentle but firm at the same time. So he relaxed back to her thigh, staring up at Tojiko, who now sat straightened up.

'The view is nice.' He thought as two big "clouds" blocked everything his eyes could see up, "how long do I have to stay here?"

"Until I say otherwise."

A soothing silence filled the empty area, the only sound was the wind blowing, the tree branch moving along.

The sun moves its way to the peak, shining the brightest light. To Tojiko, this is nothing more than a warm tan. Watching his chest rise and fall, the rhythm of each breath.

"You have been working hard this past month for a non-sorcerer. That's a lot of dedication." Her voice is smooth, placing a finger on Takumi's lips before he can answer. His breath hitched just a bit as she asked.

"I do not know why ? I wish you could just let me be everything for you. But that is not possible, still, i want to be here for everything. So please, i hope you would stay." So tender is that touch, so sweet is her voice. That Takumi was not aware such words were spoken at all.

She observed it all under her gaze, and so too does this care come from a small part of possession as well, she glances at the sky. Afternoon is coming now, and as much as she wants to keep him, Tojiko also wants him to succeed.

"You can get up now." She patted his head, Takumi opened his eyes with a yawn.

"Wow, i thought you would keep me sleeping all day." Stretching his arm, Takumi slowly sat up.

"You forget I'm an assassin, I know about human biology better than most people. And that includes yours as well." She spoke with confidence, "i wouldn't mind having you sleep all day on my lap, had you not woken up. I just might keep you there." Giving Takumi a kiss on his forehead, he watches as she leaves to the side again.

"Alight, time to try again." With a refreshed mind, he weaves a hand sign once more. "Divine dogs, Nue, well's unknown Abyss."

The shadow moved, not alone, as a new force mixed and combined his two Shikigami together.

Well's unknown Abyss is an extension of the ten shadows. Instead of Totality, having his Shikigami be killed. He can create a lesser version that has multiple powers of the combined Shikigami.

"Chimera beast, Flying wolf." Exiting the shadow, two flashes of black and white going so fast it created a blur.

Shirane and Kurona now have wings on them, with their already fast speed. Takumi was sure this new form could help him avoid being hit.

"Next, Great Serpent and Max Elephant. Well's unknown Abyss." The combined beast came out, roaring to the sky with its trunk.

"Chimera beast, quetzalcoatl." Its massive form undulates with predatory grace, the serpentine body coiling and slithering like a scaled leviathan. Jagged black and pink scales glisten with cursed energy.

The head is reptilian, a venomous viper’s visage stretched and enlarged, but upon its elongated neck sit two immense front legs of an elephant, twin ivory tusks curve outward from where its serpent jaws split open.

Where the Great Serpent brings speed and Max Elephant has the overwhelming mass, this chimera balances both.

"Let's try this again." He made the shadow hand sign, "piercing ox."

Charging right out of the shadow, the bull heading for him out of the shadow.

"Quetzalcoatl!" Smashing both legs down on the bull's head. Takumi orders it to keep attacking, and the chimera beast slams and shakes the ground like an earthquake.

Running out of the dust cloud like a mad cow seeing red, Shirane and Kurona pick him up to watch from above. With aerial superiority, there's no chance for it to ram its way toward him.

*Slam!* *crash* the ox missed and turned to make chase when it got hit again by the chimera beast. This one is much harder with more

It was hard, but Takumi's sight was good enough to catch glimpses of the bull trying its hardest to run. But inside the crater, which only deepened each time Quetzalcoatl slams its legs down. Plus, the ox can only run forward, meaning it functionally cannot dodge incoming attacks.

He watches as the beast struggles to get any momentum before the outline of his chimera beast feet stomps down the final time. A huge booming sound pushed dust to fly everywhere; once cleared, he saw the beast lying motionless on the ground, then dissolving into a shadow.

"Funeral tiger." He murmured, making hand shadow of the ninth Shikigami.

Of all the beasts, this one is never shown. He only knew it by name; the telepath link in his shadow didn't tell him much, either. He saw a tiger carrying a coffin, with silhouettes moving out of the coffin.

Coming out of the shadow, it is even more different than what he'd imagined. An almost humanoid person with tiger traits. It had white fur and black stripes, and it stood on two legs; he saw that it also had claws for its hands, and chains locking a coffin behind its back.

"You're the last one in my way." Anticipation in his voice, "Attacks!"

Quetzalcoatl did the same attack with one of its front legs. The tiger put both arms up and blocked the hit, sliding back on the rough earth surfaces. It let out a cry, dropping on all fours and pounced. Even at such height, Takumi almost got slashed.

"One of them may not be enough, fine. But i need to see more of what it can do." All this time, the tiger hadn't made any moves using the coffin at its back.

The tiger landed and ducked just as a huge swipe came from behind it. It did a backflip to avoid being hit again, showing great agility.

'It must see the futility in trying to fight me, so it has no other option than to use the ability.'

Rattling sounds came out of the coffin, as he had expected. Then, what came next was something Takumi had not imagined.

The funeral tiger turned its back in his direction, and the coffin lid was then blown off. Revealing to him, the rushing figure of Piercing Ox charging at his Shikigami.

He was about to order Quetzalcoatl to just swat it when Funeral Tiger jumped on the Ox, using it as a jump pad. Takumi was dropped immediately as the tiger pounced on his two winged wolves.

Falling, he cast the shadow and fell right inside of it like jumping into water. The force was lessened, and he was not hurt, he swam back out in time as the Tiger and Ox killed his chimera beast.

'Damn it, Nue.' Summoning his bird and taking him off. Takumi isn't worry

His chimera beast had a weak defense, plus it was made so he could use his Shikigami power without fearing to lose his Shikigami. So Takumi wasn't really bothered by it.

'This is the tiger power ? Summoning the dead ?' He deduced it from one factor, which is that the ox was defeated by him most recently.

Of course there is a possibility that it can summon only the shikigami. But either way, this means he only has to fight two Shikigami at most.

"And my Shikigami outnumber you. Divine dogs, Piercing Ox, Tranquil Deer." All three Shikigami show up in attack formation.

Takumi jumped down, kicking Funeral Tiger in the chest as his dogs dashed by with their claws meeting the tigers.

On the other side of the fight are two Piercing oxs, heads bumping into each other. Pushing an equal amount of force against their target.

In the midst of the battle, injury is, of course, unavoidable, for every clash of claws and horns, both Takumi and the Tiger side would suffer damage.

But only he has a healer, Tranquil Deer, using its reverse curse technique to recover all the marks of the claw on his body to full health.

"You see, this is why you would lose." Takumi said, flexing his arm that was cut by the tiger claw a mere moment ago.

The attack of the tiger became more intense, but as long as he could operate his Shikigami and heal them. All the attack would do is drain away the tiger's own power as the fight drags on.

"It's time to end this. Escape Rabbit." A swarm of white rabbits flooded the tiger's line of sight.

It swings the claw hands around in a mad haze to hit Takumi. Not knowing where he could be.

*swish!* *Crunch!*

Once the rabbit has cleared away, the only thing left on tge scene is Takumi and his dogs with the head of Funeral Tiger hanging in their mouth.